Hello guys!

Yes I know its been a long while and I apologise profusely to you hungry readers for not being consistent in posting regularly. Life’s been crazy busy at the moment, and when you’re kinda  on the go all the time, things like blogging your thoughts and ideas kinda slip to the bottom of the pile of “I’ll-do-it-later“. Ahh well C’est la vie.

So what’s been happening in the world of the Elected Lady over the past couple of weeks? well I’ve moved and my family have been in a middle of a move too. Mum’s moved with my youngest sister to Hemel Hempstead, whereas I’ve remained in North London but just a different part- temporarily.  Gosh I can’t wait to get my own place! But I am grateful for where I am in the mean

time. In fact, God has been so good to me that I’ve just seen his amazing love and kindness to me in the past couple of weeks, it’s almost unreal…

Anyway, life’s been pretty busy over the past couple of weeks! as a youthworker, Xbus started again and youth club and its been quite a challenge as numbers have not been as fierce as in the past but we are kick-starting with a ‘push-start’ and before we know it, we’ll be zooming past, so don’t you worry! Sometimes I wonder if being open and candidly frank about things put you into more trouble than actually worth? sorry off the cuff thought. Back to story at hand, so I was doing youthwork as you do and we did some art last week. I love Art. from Monet, to Dorothea Tanning, you name it! Basically, I decided that we should hold an art workshop and the young people’s art was incredible.

One of the guys who comes is an identical twin and he copied a picture of a bride and it was beautiful. He even admitted that he felt his drawing wasn’t that good as he hadn’t drawn in quite a while- well what do you expect when you spend all day dossing about on road doing nothing with your life? But he, and his brother have been turning a new leaf and corner. In fact most of the young people who’ve been coming into youth club off the street have been turning a corner. Its been slow progress, but progress nonetheless and we thank God for small mercies! They’ve now got themselves in to college and doing a course they enjoy in construction and carpentry, and these boys did nothing before they came to youth. Some of them even have jobs now since coming to youth club and they didnt have before. So its a real breakthrough!! But they would never admit, apart from one of the lads that the changes really shifted when they started coming to youth and really because of the mobile youth centre that I mentioned earlier called the XBUS.

 

For those of you who are puzzled about what that is, it is a bus that has been renovated into a mobile youth centre with xbox, ps3, wii, games, chairs tables, internet access and just facilities for young people to come on and just chill for a couple of hours. This centre goes from estate to estate across North London  in particular the London Borough of Enfield. So for those of you who want more info about the Xbus please see the Sublime website! www.sublime.uk.com

 

What else has been happening? now let me see…. ahh yes, I was ill all of last week. I couldn’t even attend my friend’s wedding! and it didnt help that I didnt have transport to get there either. It was is Wales the wedding was. I hear it was beautiful…the pictures appear to confirm it well. I had to rest, yet I was so busy that I thought I wasn’t going to cope, but suddenly a rest from within kicked in and I was able to get through the week. That was only by the hand of God. I literally had to pray to get through most of the week yet I also got rest in between. At my church we had a guest speaker by the name of George Adeboye  come to speak on Breakthrough and you can be SURE that I took notes!! It was so powerful and so accurate that I learned so much. However, the week was so intense that I was actually glad that I slept and just rested on Saturday (day of my friend’s wedding) in the end. (hmm sounds like Sabbath to me…) But by the evening I was out and about again and attended my friend’s birthday dinner. He cooked for the first time! LUSH FOOD!! He’s got talent! I gotta give him that, and his hospitality was incredible. aww bless his little cotton socks especially considering that it was his birthday- 18th to be precise and he served myself, and 2 of my friends so well!

The food was just amazing. The carrot and lentil soup was so good that I thought there would be more left! Then the Pork was amahhhhzing especially his mashed potatoes (without LUMPS! HEHE) and then he killed me with chocolate cakes!!! I was so over stuffed by the time I got home that I physically couldn’t sleep as I was so stuffed lol. My body was probably working overtime to burn off the calories of the food!

 

But I assure the last two weeks’experiences really taught me some lessons: First, listen to God; second, listen to your body; acknowledge your emotions and stand in faith. These lessons really impacted me as I realised I needed to be led by my spirit to understand where I was and to just even do the mundane things like sleep (well its not so mundane if you dont get enough of it) and basically preparing oneself for the daily tasks ahead. I met challenges, yes but I overcame them. Like, arguing with my mum – well I’ve been doing a lot of that it seems lately and I really don’t like it. To be honest I hate it. Why can’t she just hear me sometimes? (am sure she says the same thing about me)-generation gap! But seriously, life isn’t a bed of roses and sometimes you’ve just gotta decide in yourself that you are just gonna wake up and fight- carpe diem- seize the day- not in YOLO style (you only live once-for the abbrivieation illeterate…) and it is blood sweat and tears. And yes it is tough and sometimes lazy but you gotta take time to rest and take time to work and work it out.

Now for music inspiration of the week: IMOGEN HEAP!! I love this woman. She’s just incredible. Her appreciation for music in such a unique way is just groundbreaking and daring and her alternative style and approach to music splits people right down the middle. But I love her. She is so creative. with songs like Just for now (live radio version) or neglected space (a poem about a piano), she creates an atmosphere with a powerful vibration of sound that transcends thought and always catches me at how the heck did she think of that?

see link below for neglected space:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dW2FFkXIdM

see link below for lifeline:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_SqU-Ys3-0&feature=relmfu

Her lyrics provoke you to think and what I love most about her is the way she involves her fans! She would get them to send lines, thoughts and feelings and by them sharing that, she formulates and weaves this tapestry of song that she releases back to the fans that leave them feeling that they were apart of something that is truly music and truly wonderful!

 

I love her song minds without fear. Its creative . Imogen heap I think is one of the underdogs in the music business that is underrated and because she’s not so mainstream as in totally commercialised and to put in plain English, “a total SELL-OUT” like some artists today, she retains her strength in exploring music and sound to its extreme end and its a journey. That’s not to say I like every song but I think my most favourite of hers was Hide and Seek. You know a song is a good song when artists like Jason Derullo start to sample their tracks to gain their number 1s!

Hide and Seek: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYIAfiVGluk

Anyway I think I’ve talked enough, I’ve got a lot to do today- studio searches, giving private tuition to my student today (oh by the way I’ve got another student now! yaaaay!! PTL) and then planning my life with jobs and developing business ideas.

 

So please feel free to respond or share your thoughts- keeping it real with the Elected Lady, Peace. xx